Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper started his NFL career with back-to-back Pro Bowl seasons - 72 receptions for 1,070 yards in 2015 and 83 receptions for 1,153 yards in 2016 - after being the fourth player selected in the 2015 NFL Draft.

But three games into the 2017 season, the former Alabama All-American has 10 receptions for 101 yards. He doesn't have more because he's had trouble catching the football.

"He's a dynamic player for us," Oakland coach Jack Del Rio said on Monday, the day after the Washington Redskins beat the Raiders 27-10. "Not a good thing when he's not catching the ball and making those plays. We've got to find a way to help that be rectified. ... When we get him free and get the ball to him delivered like that, we've got to be able to catch it and go get busy."

Cooper looked fine in the preseason with seven catches for 124 yards and a touchdown in limited action in two games. Last year, he dropped four out of 87 catchable balls.

"Most of the balls that I've dropped have been from a result of trying to run before I actually catch the ball," Cooper told reporters in the Raiders' locker room on Wednesday afternoon.

"I try to move forward," Cooper said. "Obviously, I like to look back on them and see how I dropped the ball and then try to fix it. ... It can be a little frustrating, but just have to go and fix it."

Not only has Cooper had to answer questions this week about dropped passes, he's also been on the receiving end of gloating by the Washington secondary, after cornerback Josh Norman and safety D.J. Swearinger said Cooper and Oakland receiver Michael Crabtree bragged about how much yardage they were going to pile up on the Redskins before the game.

Crabtree caught one pass for 7 yards and Cooper caught one pass for 6 yards in the game.

"First and foremost, you don't come up in here and say what you're going to put up on somebody," Norman said. "Two hundred yards? (Crabtree) didn't catch two balls. He only caught one, huh? So please, whatever you do, do not run your mouth if you're a wide receiver and expect to show up on Sundays, because I'm telling you, we are here and we are waiting. Don't come out here and tell me what you're going to do. Show me. You're going to have to run through me to get that. ...

"Whatever that young cat said, Coop, go and take it back," Crabtree? I have nothing to say to you. Yes, I may be Cover 2, but I'm Cover 1, too. I'm Cover 1, Cover 2, Cover 3 and Cover 4. All of them. All of the ingredients to make a perfect attack. We do all the extra stuff. When you come out on this field, you're going to see about us."

Swearinger posted a photo of Cooper on Instagram and said the receiver had said he'd have 200 receiving yards.

Noted as laconic and even-keeled, Cooper said he didn't know what they were talking about.

"I don't know where he gets that from," Cooper said. "As long as I've been here, I've never bragged or anything before or after a game. So I don't know where that comes from."

The Raiders visit the Denver Broncos at 3:25 p.m. CDT Sunday for their next game. Cooper hasn't had a lot of success against the Broncos, with 14 receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown in four games, including the only game in his career in which he didn't catch a pass.

"They'll probably be the best secondary we face this year," Cooper said. "Two All-Pro cornerbacks. They're a scrappy group. They take risks. They catch interceptions."

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Oakland and Denver have squared off 113 times in the regular season, with the Raiders leading the series 61-50-2. Each team has a 2-1 record this season and trails the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West standings.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @AMarkG1.